Colorado men's basketball: Buffs moving on without Dinwiddie

Freshman Hopkins will take PG's spot in starting lineup

Colorado freshman Jaron Hopkins will take the place of the injured Spencer Diwiddie in the the starting lineup. (JEREMY PAPASSO / Daily Camera)

If anyone is feeling sorry for the Colorado men's basketball team, stop.

The Buffaloes aren't looking for sympathy, and they aren't feeling sorry for themselves.

On Sunday, the 21st-ranked Buffs (14-3, 3-1 Pac-12) lost star point guard Spencer Dinwiddie to a season-ending knee injury. A couple of minutes later, they lost talented freshman guard/forward Tre'Shaun Fletcher to a knee injury that will keep him out six to eight weeks.

Colorado's philosophy going forward? Buckle up and play.

"It's the message," sophomore forward Josh Scott said. "There's no excuse and anybody that does have an excuse, frankly I hope they don't play. We're out here to compete and play our hardest and give it our all. That's all we can ask. No excuse."

CU hit the court Tuesday afternoon for the first time since losing Dinwiddie and Fletcher. It was the first of two practices before No. 25 UCLA (13-3, 2-1) comes to Boulder on Thursday night.

The Buffs will certainly look different without Dinwiddie and Fletcher, but their goals haven't changed.

"We are still a good team," Scott said. "We still have a lot of talented guys. I don't think there's a question in our minds and there shouldn't be in anybody else's. Spencer's a big part, but that's one of the reasons why coach (Tad) Boyle recruited good players."

The first noticeable difference will come when the starting lineups are announced. Dinwiddie has been in the starting lineup in each of CU's 86 games over the past three seasons.

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On Thursday, true freshman Jaron Hopkins will take his spot in the lineup.

"I expect him to step up, like I expect from all of our players," Boyle said. "He doesn't have to play perfect. I told him he doesn't need to be Spencer Dinwididie. He just needs to be Jaron Hopkins and be as good as he can be. Jaron gives us great length, great athleticism, size, strength and offensively he can distribute the ball, he can shoot the ball, he can get the ball to the rim - a lot of things that Spencer did. He's just going to have to be more consistent with it."

Hopkins made two starts early in the year, but has primarily been a role player off the bench. He is sixth on the team in minutes played (17.1 per game) and scoring (5.4 points per game).

"It's a little bit more weight on my shoulders, so I'm just going to have to grow up quick and mature," he said. "We're going to have to mature as a team.

"It's a little bit more pressure on me, but I think I can do it."

Hopkins certainly won't be the only Buff feeling some pressure to step up.

Dinwiddie is averaging 14.7 points, 3.8 assists and 3.1 rebounds per game while being the Buffs' top defender. So, it's going to take a group effort to make up for what he brought to the court.

From a leadership standpoint, junior guard Askia Booker and Scott are the most likely to fill Dinwiddie's shoes.

"I think my role has changed," Scott said. "It's almost like I got moved up a year ahead of schedule. It's going to be new and I'm going to have to figure that out and work on how I'm going to help this team win now.

"I told Spencer I feel like I graduated in the course of 24 hours, in a way. I think all of us do feel that way."

Fletcher out

Just moments after Dinwiddie got hurt Sunday, Fletcher injured his left knee. Initially, the Buffs didn't think it was a serious injury. Fletcher, in fact, played a few minutes in the second half.

CU found on Monday, though, that Fletcher will need surgery and will miss six to eight weeks. Boyle did not know the specific injury suffered, but hopes to have Fletcher back for the final stretch of the season.

"His being out obviously puts one less (player) on the perimeter," he said.

True freshman George King figures to get more minutes off the bench to make up for Fletcher's loss.

Notable

Senior center Ben Mills is the only player on the roster who has played a game at CU without Dinwiddie. ... Thursday's game is scheduled for 6 p.m. and it will be broadcast on the Pac-12 Network.

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